It is always exciting to witness the work that God has done in someone’s life.
One of my language teachers is nicknamed “Sky.” He is 21 years old, has fairly good English and is a very likeable young man. When he was in his early teens he lived with his mother who was a drug addict. Periodically, she was arrested by the police and put in detention to ‘dry out.’ This meant that Sky had no supervision or guidance in his life. He went to a poor ‘middle school’ and chose some bad friends. When these boys needed money, they would hold up other kids in the school and demand money from them. Sky was involved in many fights and has some scars to show for it. Not surprisingly, he did not progress well with his studies.
One day, after another period of detention, his mother decided to get some help for her problem. She linked up with a group based in Hong Kong who worked with drug addicts. Through this group she met some Christians who shared the good news God’s power to change her life. She gave her life to Christ and joined the church.
One of the church leaders took an interest in her son. He was very wise and slowly built a relaxed relationship with this lad who was very suspicious, not wanting to be helped. Finally the right time came to share more deeply, and Sky joined also gave his heart to Jesus and joined the church. About this same time, a family from England offered Sky a room in their home. They shared their life with him, helped him in his studies and even paid off some debts he had from injuring people in his fighting. Sky went on to high school and took an interest in his studies. The family helped him to practice English in their home daily, and he experienced a good orderly family life.
As we have seen how he has grown and developed, we are all impressed with the potential in this young man. He has now left Chinese teaching and is getting more work experience so that he can graduate from college. We believe that God has great plans for his future.
Sky’s life changed course from certain pain and destruction to hope and potential because some cared enough to blend their lives with his. Praise God for those who pour out their lives so that others can find life.